Wichita State Shockers: Mad Respect to SDSU

The Sixth ranked Wichita State Shockers played host to the South Dakota State Jackrabbits Tuesday night in a thrilling game that promises more of the same throughout the season.

Wichita State overcame a 13 point deficit early in the second half to pull out the victory. The Shockers showed tenacity, willingness, and an overall desire to win tonight in their effort against the Jacks. SDSU was lights out in the first half. They shot over 60% percent from the field and hit 8 three pointers on just 12 attempts.

Mike Daum was a force to be reckoned with on the offensive end. The team is built around Daum, who couldn’t be contained in the first half. The “Dauminator” (surely that must be his nickname) was 4 for 5 from long range. At Six-foot nine-inches you couldn’t help but compare him to Doug McDermott, especially playing against the Shox.

Daum ended up with a solid 9/20 from the field. It seemed like he was scoring every time he touched the ball, making seven threes on the night. He scored 31 total points in as many minutes. Daum drew his 4th foul at 5:51 and had to sit for several short stretches of the game. Wichita State began to pull away at this points and built a lead steadily over the remaining minutes.

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Wichita State gave up 50 points in the first half and Gregg Marshall was livid, and he let the boys know it.

"@TaylorEldridge reported that “It was Landry Shamet who stood up and addressed the locker room at halftime to get his team fired up for the 2nd half. Not a senior, but Shamet becoming a true leader on this team,” according to his teammate Shaq Morris."

The right attitude

Both are growing into leaders, averaging over 13 points per game coming into tonight and dropping 21 & 20 respectively in tonight’s effort. Shaq was dominant from the floor, going 9/11 from the field and swishing the only three he attempted. Shamet on the other hand looked like he had something to prove tonight. He definitely wanted to show that he was the best all-around player on the floor. Shamet hit 4/8 three-pointers and dished out 8 assists. More importantly he looked like the leader on the court, and proved that in the locker room at half-time.

Gregg Marshall was candid with the post-game comments,

"“I think the resolve of these guys, the toughness, the refuse-to-lose attitude and all of those things really carried us tonight. It was really just my teammates talking to me and letting me know they wanted me to dominate the second half.”"

Easier said than done, although tonight the Shockers were able to show a great deal of poise and patience. The Shockers have really responded to the loss against Notre Dame. Saturday’s huge road win against Baylor was a nice rebound. This win will give them the kind of momentum they need going into a couple of big games coming up.

The con man

Conner Frankamp also came up huge for the Shockers today, setting an all-time school record of 30 games in a row with a made three point bucket. The Wichita native is the top all-time city league scorer, averaging 31 PPG his senior year. He’s also the all-time leader in free throw percentage in the state of Kansas at over 90% during his high school career.

Now he can add his name to the list of some of the great all-time three point shooters in Wichita State history. Ron Baker broke the record a few years back, and records are meant to be broken. Landry Shamet’s streak was ended earlier this season, and so now Frankamp holds the honor.

Coming up

The Shockers will again be tested over the coming weeks, as they face two more Big 12 teams. Wichita will travel to Stillwater on Saturday to face Oklahoma State, who defeated WSU last year at Intrust Bank Arena in Wichita. Oklahoma will then come to Wichita to face the Shockers in the same venue, which seats over 15,000. It will play host to the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament come March, 2018.

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The Shockers should find themselves in the top 5 if they run a sweep of the Big 12 over the next couple of weeks. Be sure to check back frequently to KCKingdom for updates on the Shox & everything black & gold.

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